"Where does all the shit go after you flush it?" asks Anil Kapoor, as he walks on the stage during the launch of his upcoming fiction television series, Navrangi Re!, which focuses on the burning issue of urban sanitation. The 26-episode series is about a congested neighbourhood in urban India—Navrangi Re—that struggles with dismal realities of hygiene and sanitation in public toilets, on a daily basis.
The lead character of the drama series, Vishwaas, is essayed by actor Aamir Ali who is on a perpetual hunt for a ‘breaking news’ story as a struggling TV journalist and tries to utilise his resources to help bring about a change in the locality, aided by a few others. The supporting cast has thespians such as Sushmita Mukherjee, Raju Kher, Vaishnavi Dhanraj and others.
Narrating an anecdote from his childhood, Anil Kapoor said he recalled how he was privileged to have a toilet in his house in Chembur but not during those summer vacations he'd spend at his grandmom's at Rajinder Nagar in Delhi. "It was a time when the wash rooms would not be as plush as they are now. There were no flushes and not even flowing water," and that he along with the kids of the house would relieve themselves in the narrow lanes outside that ran alongside the homes. "It is absolutely a must that we address this aspect which is otherwise not spoken about openly in normal conversations. We must talk about this shit; what should we do with this shit.”
"Yeh show nahin, life hai [This is not a show, it is life]," said Kapoor, staring down at the audience, at Mumbai's Sahara Star. He plays a special character in the story.
Navrangi Re! will go on air on February 2 and will be bi-weekly, spread over 13 weeks, on Viacom18 network’s Hindi general entertainment channel, Rishtey, and its regional language channels —COLORS Gujarati and COLORS Odia. It will also be available on the network’s OTT platform VOOT.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has funded BBC Media Action to create and develop Navrangi Re!. Madhu Krishna, India country lead, WSH, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said, “In our mission to inspire people to take action to change the world, this is the first time that Gates Foundation has partnered with a satellite television network in India. Navrangi Re! is an innovative approach to engage TV viewing audiences, digital citizens and social media users on sanitation issues.” Sudhanshu Vats, Group CEO and Managing Director, Viacom18, said in a statement: "With Navrangi Re!, we are creating a platform that aptly uses the medium of entertainment to bring in mass behaviour change."
